David Ashby, a 14 year old honor-roll student from central Florida, is planning to spend the summer walking the 1,100 miles from Orlando to Washington DC. While his classmates while away vacation sitting by the pool or working at Dairy Queen, Ashby plans to embark on this ambitious walk, during which he will sleep on the street and eat only free food in an effort to draw attention to the 1.4 million children who are currently homeless in the US. 65 of these homeless children attend David's high school, including his best friend, who became homeless when his family was evicted from their home earlier this year.
David will chronicle his experiences walking, begging for food and sleeping on the streets on his blog. He estimates that the journey will take him 57 days. He will be shadowed by his mom, Alison Ashby, who raised him as a single mother and is mentally preparing herself for the likely reality that her son will find himself hungry and often extremely uncomfortable along the way.
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Do you know any high school or college students who are spending the summer engaged in a similarly creative and/or meaningful way? What causes are young activists passionate about today? Please leave a comment below.
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